To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what plans he has to bring forward proposals to levy fines on 17 and 18-year-olds who are not in education or training; and if he will make a statement. (154527)

In the Green Paper “Raising Expectations: staying in education and training post-16” we proposed that, if a young person continued to refuse to participate in education or training, despite the efforts of providers and the local authority to help and support them onto a programme of learning, they could be issued with a new type of civil Order called an Attendance Order, We proposed two options for ensuring that if Attendance Orders are made they are followed: that criminal sanctions could be pursued if the terms of an Attendance Order are breached, or that civil / administrative sanctions could be pursued. We intend to publish further proposals in the autumn.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether he plans to bring forward proposals to use criminal sanctions against (a) parents and (b) children who do not stay in education in the future to age 18 years; and if he will make a statement. (154538)

We said in the Green Paper “Raising Expectations”, on raising the participation age that we would expect parents to encourage and facilitate their child’s participation, and that if there is evidence that a parent of a young person is helping them break the law it should be possible to hold them accountable as well. We are considering what appropriate sanctions would be in order to do this effectively, We proposed that if a young person continued to refuse to participate in education or training, despite the efforts of providers and the local authority to help and support them onto a programme of learning, they could be issued with a new type of civil Order called an Attendance Order. This would be initiated by the local authority. We proposed two options for ensuring that if Attendance Orders are made they are followed: that criminal sanctions or civil/administrative sanctions.

These proposals can be accessed at:

http://www.dfes.gov.uk/consultations/downloadableDocs/6965-DfES-Raising%20Expectations%20Green%20Paper.pdf

We intend to publish further proposals in the autumn.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether he plans to bring forward proposals to withhold driving licences from people below the age of 18 years who do not participate in education or training; and if he will make a statement. (154541)

We said in the Green Paper ‘Raising Expectations: staying in education and training post-16’ that some other countries have withheld driving licenses from young people not participating in education or training and that we would explore whether they may be similar incentives that could work in this country. I will set out more detailed plans in relation to raising the participation age later in the autumn.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what sanctions he plans for children over the age of 16 who fail to attend school or take up training should the education leaving age be raised to 18; and if he will make a statement. (154759)

In the Green Paper “Raising Expectations: staying in education and training /post-16” we proposed that, if a young person continued to refuse to participate in education or training, despite the efforts of providers and the local authority to help and support them onto a programme of learning, they could be issued with a new type of civil Order called an Attendance Order. The process of issuing an Attendance Order would be initiated by the local authority. We proposed two options for ensuring that if Attendance Orders are made they are followed: that criminal sanctions could be pursued if the terms of an Attendance Order are breached, or that civil/administrative sanctions could be pursued. These proposals can be accessed at:

http://www.dfes.gov.uk/consultations/downloadableDocs/6965-DfES-Raising%20Expectations%20Green%20Paper.pdf

We intend to publish further proposals in the autumn.